Getting the most out of GoodGym

GoodGym has a lot to offer you in 2022. We noticed a number of GoodGymers rising quickly through the ranks to collect their 50th good deed t-shirt, become members of their local TaskForce or get stuck into a new type of happening. Here we explore how to get the most of GoodGym.

January got off to a flying start with every GoodGym area getting stuck into the January challenge as they ran, walked, cycled and did good deeds in their communities. Despite restrictions on meeting and doing tasks indoors, the good deeds flew in and we celebrated every single one. GoodGym has shown again this January that fitness and doing good go hand in hand and we are buzzing to see it after such a tricky time in our communities.

What can GoodGym give to me?

• A supportive community

• Likeminded individuals

• Opportunities to improve your fitness

• A mixture of good stuff to do

• Support from area activators and TaskForce to get stuck in

Getting the most from GoodGym

We spoke to newbie Tay who joined GoodGym York in September 2021 and has already racked up an impressive 34 good deeds to find out how she's managed to grab so much goodness from GoodGym in such a short space of time.

For Tay, GoodGym York was the answer to a few things she was looking for and after having the community recommended to her by a friend who had spotted them out running in the famous red tshirts, she jumped straight in. Despite often feeling overwhelmed in large groups of people, Tay was made to feel welcome immediately and got going, stating regular community missions were the key to building confidence due to the smaller group size, and allowing her to rack up the good deeds quickly. She is counting down (or would it be up?!) to the famous black '50' tshirt and would love to hit 100 good deeds by the end of 2022.

We think you are well on the way to achieving this, Tay!

The combination of fitness - Tay now runs two to three times more a week than she did pre-GoodGym - and doing good allows Tay to grab a great deal from GoodGym while in turn giving back to her local area.

"Goodgym fits an incredibly specific niche which I had been looking for, for a long time. It’s hard to find the free time for fitness, contributing to my local community and socialising. Goodgym sits proudly in the centre of that venn diagram."

Tay's description of how easy it is to be involved with GoodGym York rings true of all GoodGym areas,

"I am incredibly grateful for York GoodGym. Our Area Activator and taskforce lay the groundwork for success in York. There is always plenty to sign up to so it’s really easy to rack up the good deeds. All I need to do is sign up and show up."

"It’s made a substantial improvement to my quality of life", Tay adds.

It's a similar story for GoodGym Barnet's Daniel who joined GoodGym during summer 2020 and has already racked up over 70 good deeds and become part of the TaskForce.

Daniel said:

"I did quite a lot of delivering medicine and shopping for people during the pandemic and I really loved that. I had some great conversations with people and it felt like we were making a significant contribution to people's well-being... it was incredibly rewarding and I was very grateful to be part of it.

It's all about community - a community of people as well as your local community. It makes you feel part of something special"

For others like Sallyann, the opportunity to immediately start giving back to her local GoodGym was a big draw. Sallyann started with GoodGym Liverpool just a few months ago in November 2021, and her gratitude to the brilliant TaskForce in her group led her to rising the ranks quickly and being a TaskForce member herself. Sally told us that she loves being part of such a supportive group.

Sallyann is already training up to become a run leader at GoodGym Liverpool too, telling us:

"I LOVE running I LOVE people and I LOVE running with people. I was so excited that the group runs were able to restart (I hadn’t attended one as I joined during the pandemic) . We have two fantastic run leaders in Liverpool but I am aware that this is a big commitment for them both and although they do not see it this way I wanted to offer support and what better way to train to be a run leader.

I get so excited when someone discovers running or discovers their confidence through running (as I recall both in myself- I'm a late to start runner) I want to offer support as a run leader to lead group runs as Good Gym is where a lot of magic happens."

Are you keen to do more with your local GoodGym? Speak to your area activator or a member of your TaskForce about how to become more involved. There's a real power in getting more out, the more you put in!